[stolen virtue]

To the OP, I am so sorry about your loss and pain, I think sometimes we don't understand that forging ahead with help is not always the best thing for our bodies. I have a son and cannot imagine my life without his funny, silly jokes. I am so sorry.

[Foxtrot's]

That is just too sad. And the OP my condolances, too.

That bloody Oxycontin - so often doctors do not even explain the hazzards of the stuff.

I was going to post that whether it is our business or not, the media will make sure they dig up anything and everything, regardless of any pain inflicted, so it makes comments of MYOB irrelevant. Whether the family wants privacy or not, they often do not have a choice.

Chall makes good points about conditions that we may learn from.

[fibbermaggee]

Pain......the 5th vital sign. Here is the real problem. As a society we have demanded that there be no pain. The movement started for the cancer patients and spread to society in general. Every single discomfort from menstrual cramps to headaches to arthritis to heartburn to chronic back pain is brought to the emergency department and narcotics are demanded. If patients don't get what they want they file complaints. The drug seeking is rampant. People become addicted to these strong narcotics and there is no going back. Prescription drug addiction is epidemic in this country and as a society we are responsible for it. Blaming the medical profession is way off base.........patients know their rights and they will go after their meds with a vengeance. I know this because I work in an ED.

[KellyS]

Pain......the 5th vital sign. Here is the real problem. As a society we have demanded that there be no pain. The movement started for the cancer patients and spread to society in general. Every single discomfort from menstrual cramps to headaches to arthritis to heartburn to chronic back pain is brought to the emergency department and narcotics are demanded. If patients don't get what they want they file complaints. The drug seeking is rampant. People become addicted to these strong narcotics and there is no going back. Prescription drug addiction is epidemic in this country and as a society we are responsible for it. Blaming the medical profession is way off base.........patients know their rights and they will go after their meds with a vengeance. I know this because I work in an ED.

I don't know how to reply to this, but wanted to say that if anyone has lived in truly chronic, severe pain, it is a nightmare you would not wish on anyone. And the most difficult thing about pain--there is no way to measure or diagnose it. You have to depend on the medical professionals you see to believe you and develop a plan that gives you the best chance to live a life that is not dominated by pain.

For 6 years I've been dealing with severe pain and I treasure the small team of doctors that take my pain seriously. However, I have had terrible experiences with medical staff that label you as "drug seeking" because of the medications you are on, and behave as if you are exaggerating your symptoms to obtain more medication.

I am truly lucky that I was able to have a nerve cord stimulator implanted last fall that has greatly reduced my pain and the amount of pain medications needed to manage it (but the three surgeries I went through to have it done were some of the worst medical experiences I've had, and those were my 17th, 18th, and 19th major surgeries).

Before then, I was on high doses of MS Contin (morphine), supplemented with Percocet for breakthrough pain. Not to mention the antidepressants for the depression and anxiety the severe pain caused. Oh, and the script for diazepam from one doctor because, despite the narcotics, the pain kept me from being able to sleep. Like I said, a nightmare... Add a cold to the mix and a common cold medication, not thinking straight due to the meds and pain, and suddenly you have a life-threatening situation...

None of us should speculate or pass judgment on this situation or others because we do not know why or how it happened or the circumstances surrounding it. Strong narcotics affect your thought process...it is easy to mistakenly take the wrong medication(s) if you're not paying attention or not realize that a certain combination of medications may be deadly.

And I do lay some responsibility at the feet of doctors--I have had some close calls due to doctors who were not paying attention to the medications I was on, including a severe withdrawal reaction that resulting in me fainting, hitting my head, and spending 3 days in a neuro-trauma ICU with a possible brain aneurysm.

Walk a mile in a person's shoes before assuming anything about them. Perhaps the post bothered me because I've dealt with ED doctors and nurses who treated me badly, making assumptions without having a clear understanding of my very complicated medical history. It's sad to see someone in the medical field making assumptions about the people coming to them for help. I apologize in advance if I've misinterpreted the post...it's just a topic that hits very close to home for me.

My rock through all of this (besides my wonderful husband) was my horse. And even though I couldn't ride for most of these years, just being out in the barn brightened even the darkest day.

[fibbermaggee]

I'm not passing judgement, I am stating a fact. The fact is that prescription medications are abused terribly in this country and people are dying from it. I am not judging you for your pain. I am not telling you that you are a drug seeker. I don't know you. I do know alot of people are abusing these meds. You may not be but it is a very slippery slope to be taking massive amounts of narcotics for chronic pain. A tolerance develops and increasing doses are needed until there is no dose that is effective. I commend you for seeking alternative methods of pain control. That is what needs to be happening more. The medical professional you saw in the ED are under a tremendous amount of pressure to NOT give narcotics, especially for chronic pain. There are 11 people a day overdosing in Florida from oxycontin. There are no regulations in that state monitoring narcotic use. Scheister Doctors open up pain clinics and patients go from one to the other "doctor shopping" to get these meds to get high. It is a fact. Amy Tryon probably had alot of pain from her multiple injuries. She was not handling it the right way. You do not take four different kinds of Benzo's to try and treat your chronic pain. This is just a travesty and it happens every day in this country.

[fibbermaggee]

Also, let me clarify......I am talking about chronic pain. Acute pain (broken leg, appy, gunshot wound, etc. etc.) needs to be treated with strong pain medications. The problem arises when treating for "chronic pain conditions". Nobody ever died of pain but thousands and thousands of people are dying from pain meds.

[skydy]

I understand the need for pain medication at times and that, in itself, isn't worrisome to me. The four different benzodiazepines however, were an accident waiting to happen.

A tragedy. No point in trying to assign blame here, at this time.. We all do careless things and usually don't die as a result, most often we are lucky and the risks we take don't kill us.

My heart goes out to Amy's husband, family, and friends, because she is gone. When all is said and done, it doesn't really matter why

[TheJenners]

People commit suicide from chronic pain on a regular basis. A vet on my island did just that this very year. So I guess they don't die from the pain, no....

[ReeseTheBeast]

You do not take four different kinds of Benzo's to try and treat your chronic pain. This is just a travesty and it happens every day in this country.

Exactly. Benzos are primarily used to treat anxiety, not pain; and the long term effects are extremely dangerous. I should know, I'm working with my doctor on getting off of them because they're doing so much damage to my brain.

[kcmel]

Pain......the 5th vital sign. Here is the real problem. As a society we have demanded that there be no pain. The movement started for the cancer patients and spread to society in general. Every single discomfort from menstrual cramps to headaches to arthritis to heartburn to chronic back pain is brought to the emergency department and narcotics are demanded. If patients don't get what they want they file complaints. The drug seeking is rampant. People become addicted to these strong narcotics and there is no going back. Prescription drug addiction is epidemic in this country and as a society we are responsible for it. Blaming the medical profession is way off base.........patients know their rights and they will go after their meds with a vengeance. I know this because I work in an ED.

This is probably the most ignorant post I have seen in all my years on COTH! You have no clue.

[kcmel]

Actually there are some types of chronic pain that do respond to benzos and not other drugs. But I agree, 4? Poor Amy, she must have been in tremendous pain. This is really heartbreaking.

[trubandloki]

Curiosity question - When I pick up a new (new = a script I have not had filled in their system before) prescription at my local Wegmans they require me to have a conversation with the pharmacist. During that conversation the pharmacist goes over the 'you can not take this with that' type stuff. There are also a boat load of inserts included.

Is this attempt to educate* us not the norm at other places?


*attempt to educate because I admit I simply want to get my medication and go home, because most likely I am sick, and that is why I need drugs so spending the extra time is more of an annoyance so listening is not the priority.

[riderboy]

Pain......the 5th vital sign. Here is the real problem. As a society we have demanded that there be no pain. The movement started for the cancer patients and spread to society in general. Every single discomfort from menstrual cramps to headaches to arthritis to heartburn to chronic back pain is brought to the emergency department and narcotics are demanded. If patients don't get what they want they file complaints. The drug seeking is rampant. People become addicted to these strong narcotics and there is no going back. Prescription drug addiction is epidemic in this country and as a society we are responsible for it. Blaming the medical profession is way off base.........patients know their rights and they will go after their meds with a vengeance. I know this because I work in an ED.

I would have to agree with this, although the problem is so complex that there is no simple answer. As far as Amy, with the multiple drugs found in her system, I can hardly believe these were taken "as prescribed." I have to wonder to what extent this may have influenced Amy's riding over the past few years as well, if at all. Very sad, but the amount of prescription drug abuse in this country is astounding.

[grayarabpony]

People commit suicide from chronic pain on a regular basis. A vet on my island did just that this very year. So I guess they don't die from the pain, no....

EXACTLY.

It sounds like Amy was suffering from pain AND emotional distress judging from the drugs she was taking.

Actually there are some types of chronic pain that do respond to benzos and not other drugs. But I agree, 4? Poor Amy, she must have been in tremendous pain. This is really heartbreaking.

Agreed.

[IFG]

So sad, and FWIW, I do think that this is a cautionary tale that will perhaps save some other people the same fate.

[fibbermaggee]

kcmel, do your research. Overdoses from prescription medications has, in some areas, risen 10 fold. Do you think people are having that much more pain than they did 25 years ago? It's important to adequately treat acute pain. It's important to adequately treat cancer pain in a terminal patient no matter what the side effects. It is inappropriate to treat chronic pain without objective findings with high doses of narcotics. There are other avenues that need to be explored for the chronic pain people. We measure pain in the medical field by using the 1-10 score, 10 being the worst pain you can imagine. It is totally subjective and people can tell you whatever they want to. I can't tell you how many times someone has told me their pain is 10/10 while sending a text message for their friend to pick up a hamburger for them at burger king. I don't think people outside of the medical profession know what kind of a significant problem this is in this country.

[Trakehner]

She died of a Drug Overdose and we don't know if it was accidental...well, we don't, pain can do all sorts of things to people's judgement.

The newspaper story said: "The death of two-time Olympic equestrian Amy Tryon was caused by an accidental opiate overdose, according to the King County Medical Examiner’s Office....The medical examiner’s office ruled that Tryon’s death was accidental and said Tuesday that toxicology reports show she died of an “acute combined opiate” overdose. The office said toxicology tests showed that present in her system at the time of her death were Oxycodone, a semi-synthetic opioid, diphenhydramine, which is an ingredient in over-the-counter cold and allergy medications, and several benzodiazepines: Alprazolam, Diazepam, Lorazepam and Temazepam.

In recent years, Tryon had suffered knee and back injuries that forced her to cut back from riding."

Everyone knows about Oxycodone, the bendzodiazepines (which are addictive),when combined with other central nervous system depressants such as alcohol and opiates (such as Oxycodone), the potential for toxicity increases.

Amy Tryon died from a painkiller cocktail.

[fibbermaggee]

And benzo's will help to relieve spasm......and they will make you so stoned that maybe they numb the pain. But they do not work to block the pain receptors like the opiates.

[riderboy]

People seem to treat alcoholism/drug addiction as some sort of character flaw or moral weakness. Anyone with any professional knowledge knows that they are simply disease states, like diabetes, or hypertension. People have a really hard time wrapping their brains around that, but if you want to help someone, you have to start there. The old-timers (1930s) in Alcoholics Anonymous called it "The Allergy". They knew that for them, alcohol in any form was death. ( The AMA finally recognized alcoholism as a disease state in the 1950s. )
I don't know Amy's story, but I do know that these issues know no social, economic, gender or racial boundaries, they are equal opportunity killers. It would be nice, if those afflicted could get the treatment they needed without stigma, judgement or guilt. Betty Ford was one such courageous person.

[Reynard Ridge]

Everyone knows about Oxycodone, the bendzodiazepines (which are addictive),when combined with other central nervous system depressants such as alcohol and opiates (such as Oxycodone), the potential for toxicity increases.

Not everyone. I'm 47 years old and have never suffered from any kind of severe pain in my life. I've had my wisdom teeth out and two c-sections and have never been higher than self defined 4 on the pain scale.

Count me among those who are learning something from this. I suppose if I or someone in my family were taking these drugs I would be educated by my doctor/physician, but this is seriously eye opening for me.

My heart goes out to Amy's people, because I do believe they deserve their privacy.